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e back to focus on Lydia. Her brothers certainly didn’t want to hear about how lonely she was. But Emmett had really listened. He’d also been supportive and didn’t let her beat herself up. She was grateful for that. And surprised. She didn’t expect that from him at all.
The whole afternoon had been enlightening for her. For the first time, she’d been able to see Emmett the man, not the rival. Knowing they both had to be on their best behavior had left them with no choice but to get along and get the job done. It was quite the realization to find that she actually liked Emmett. She was able to relax around him, something she couldn’t do with many men.
She wasn’t ready to address his insinuation that he might be the right kind of guy for her, but she had to admit they certainly had chemistry. Her entire nervous system lit up when he was around, reminding her just how long it had been since she’d indulged in a relationship. He was attractive, and he smelled amazing. When they were close together she wanted to bury her face in his neck and breathe in the scent of him. All that was nice, but in the long term, what would they talk about? Would they have anything in common but hot sex and indulgent pastry? She didn’t know.
He was certain there was someone out there for her. She wasn’t so sure after years by herself, but knowing those older couples were finding romance gave her hope that maybe she’d still have a chance at love, even if she didn’t settle down anytime soon.
Maddie smiled at Miss Dotty and tried to put her worries aside. “You’ll have to tell me how it goes.”
“I will. Now, I’m going to get a couple of things to take to the brunch today.” Dotty perused the selection, choosing about six different items. “Could you cut those in half? If you don’t, I just know Connie Jackson will grab a whole cinnamon roll and smuggle it out in her purse. She thinks no one sees her, but I do.”
Maddie cut up the selections and put them in the box. Dottie left quickly for a change, apparently on a mission to land herself Dick Campbell. Bless his heart—he didn’t know what was about to hit him.
Leaning against the back counter, Maddie crossed her arms and thought about what Miss Dotty had said about that movie theater in Gadsden. She bet quite a few people turned out for that kind of thing. It was a shame they didn’t have anything like that in Rosewood. They’d never gotten their own theater here, and there wasn’t really anyplace else that could show films like that.
Her gaze strayed out the front window to the square. From her angle, she could see just past the courthouse to the library. Looking at the smooth limestone of the façade, she realized that she’d never noticed there weren’t windows on that side of the building. She walked over to her window for a better look.
The square was the center of Rosewood, with the courthouse and the library situated back-to-back on a large, grassy lawn. It occurred to her then that if they set up a projector on that side, they could project movies onto the library wall. Folks could bring out blankets and chairs and watch movies on the lawn. She’d been searching her brain for something people could do in Rosewood to keep them from loitering at the bar and vandalizing public property. This just might be the thing.
Maddie fished out her notebook from the drawer behind the register and started making notes. It was mid-October, not the ideal time to kick off a series of outdoor activities, but they had enough time to try it once while the weather was mild. If they got a good turnout, maybe they could host a series of movies, or even concerts, out on the lawn next summer.
This wasn’t something she could pull off by herself, though. Lord knows, she didn’t have enough time between running the shop and all her community service chores. But she knew exactly who she could talk to about it—Alice Jordan. Alice was Mayor Gallagher’s assistant. No one who actually knew Alice had any illusions that Mayor Gallagher lifted a finger around town aside from showing up and shaking hands. Alice was the one behind the scenes who made things happen. She coordinated a lot of the community events, including the Christmas parade and the county fair, which just wrapped up a few weeks before.
Now might be the perfect time to pitch this idea, before she got caught up in Christmas preparations.
Alice normally stopped by the bakery at least once a week. Maddie hadn’t seen her yet, so maybe she’d come by today. Or maybe she’d just call her and flat out ask her to come across the street to see her.
Maddie picked up the phone and dialed the courthouse. The operator transferred her directly to Alice’s line.
“Mayor Gallagher’s office,” she said.
“Alice,” Maddie said in her most chipper voice. “This is Maddie Chamberlain. Are you busy this morning?”
“You know how things are,” she said with a tedious sigh.
Maddie could just guess. Why people kept reelecting Otto was beyond her. He wasn’t a very effective leader, but he’d become a fixture in Rosewood somehow. Southerners just loved their traditions. “Do you think you’d have time to pop by the bakery this morning? I’ve just put on a pot of tea and pulled out a tray of fresh cinnamon scones.”
Alice groaned. “That sounds wonderful, Maddie, but I can’t really run off for tea right now.”
“Of course not,” Maddie said. “This meeting is to discuss official Rosewood community activities business.”
Alice hesitated. “It is?”
“Absolutely,” Maddie replied with a grin. “Come over as soon as you can. I have an idea.”
“What in God’s name is that?” Maddie asked, staring at the wall in front of them.
Emmett scratched his head and shrugged. “I’m not much of an art connoisseur, but I guess it’s supposed to be a penis wearing a fireman’s helmet, since it’s on the side of the fire station.”
Apparently the Penis Picasso had decided to step up his game. No longer content with simple, crude images of genitalia, he had opted to add accessories this time. When they’d reported to the courthouse for their assignment Saturday morning, they were given paint remover and a pressure washer, and directed to the firehouse for their next project.
“This is ridiculous. We’re going to spend our entire stint of community service cleaning up after this punk.”
“Would you rather pick up trash in the park?”
“I would, yes. At least then I’d be doing something productive, something that would make Rosewood a better place. Right now I just feel like the guys at the end of the parade, sweeping up animal poop. He makes a mess, and we clean it up. Repeat as necessary.”
“Do you have a better suggestion?” Emmett asked. As long as there were penises to be covered up, he was pretty certain that they would be out here doing the work. It was probably saving the city a lot of money to farm out these jobs to local offenders.
